What Difference Will You Make?

One of the first lessons taught to DSs at our TMF development group was that the paradigms had shifted. I have to admit years ago when I first heard that word I was in Nashville as a guest of one of the general agencies. The General Secretary was talking about paradigms and I was thinking along the lines of the small ten-cent coin that we have and use. So, it was hard to imagine what a paradigm shift meant. The shift we heard has gone something like this: We've gone from being concerned about having 1) Happy clergy, 2) Satisfied congregations, and 3) more members and money. We have shifted from the emphasis being on clergy, congregations, members, participants, money, and facilities to those churches that take seriously the task of making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the Lord. As we begin to wind down the year, what difference will you make in making this shift a reality?

A Grateful Heart

As pastors, we face both good and bad. The bad sometimes is unreal. How can people who say they are Christians do/say/act/hurt they way they do? Yet, on we press, led by Christ to love and pray for them. At the end of the day we, with thankful hearts, give thanks for lessons learned and challenges met. We can only do so much; the rest is left up to God. Today is a day set aside by our nation to give thanks. And the best way to give thanks is with a grateful heart. Thank You, Lord.

It's Hard Not To Remember...

image from webpronews.com

I attended Flato Elementary in Kingsville, Texas. I was part of the playground patrol and safety patrol because I was in fifth grade. One watched the playground, the other helped kids cross the street. I was on playground patrol when a second grader approached me close to lunch time and said, "Sir, someone killed the President!" I immediately replied, "That's not funny! Go back and play!" Then the bell rang and we all had to go back to our classrooms for the official announcement, that President John F. Kennedy had been assassinated in Dallas, Texas, of all places. The second-grader was not kidding. I remember that death was followed by the death of one of my favorite aunts, Tia Nina, my grandmother's only sister, had died of a heart attack, I still believe, as a result of that sad day and the sad days that followed. My whole family was glued to the television for the televised drama that followed. The chaos in Dallas, the swearing in of President Lyndon B. Johnson, and the entire funeral. I saw brave Jackie cope without public hysterical crying as I had seen in the few funerals I had attended. I saw John John salute his dad's procession, and little Caroline not really aware it seemed, of all that had happened. Little kids were no longer little kids for that week and the weeks that followed. Adults wondered and worried about what could be next.

We had two television stations I believe in 1963 in Kingsville. Actually, they were Corpus Christi stations, and our favorite was CBS, Channel 10, and I got to know all about Walter Cronkite from his role in broadcasting CBS News' accounts of the death and funeral of president Kennedy. I remember wondering why he took off his glasses and looked away from the camera and towards the clock, and what clearing his throat was all about. Years later I would know it was the first time a national news anchor had come close to crying on air.

May God comfort our nation as we remember such a sad day in our history, and may we let God's love comfort and unite us in the divided country we have become. "One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."

Setting the Pace as Pastor

As pastors, we set the pace for the congregation. We lead by example. In our vows, we should be at the forefront of those most faithful to them. Our prayer life should be a model to others, that prayer is powerful and it works for those who pray. Our presence at all activities at which we lead and not lead, we should be there as a reminder that we support the church with our prayers for each event and with our presence. We lead in our gifts. We set the pace in giving. In many a church, even though she or he should not be, the pastor sometimes is the biggest giver, and we're talking money not time. We set the pace in tithing. In our service, again, given a servant's heart by God, we seek to serve to the best of our ability. And the places we serve should be beyond the church in a way that models a life of a living church that cares about the entire community, not just the preferences of the local church. And in our witness, we should not be shy nor scared of sharing how it was we came to faith. We should proclaim loudly how blessed we are to have said Yes to the Living and Loving God to be among those called to professional ministry. Putting all of these together our institution of so many years may just become a movement again.

God, Our Hiding Place

In God We Find Our Deliverance

From Psalm 71: 1 In you, O Lord, I take refuge; let me never be put to shame. 2 In your righteousness deliver me and rescue me; incline your ear to me and save me. 3 Be to me a rock of refuge, a strong fortress, to save me, for you are my rock and my fortress. 4 Rescue me, O my God, from the hand of the wicked, from the grasp of the unjust and cruel. 5 For you, O Lord, are my hope, my trust, O Lord, from my youth. 6 Upon you I have leaned from my birth; it was you who took me from my mother's womb. My praise is continually of you.

I had the perfect boyhood home. It was wooden and on blocks. It was near a creek back in the days when creeks had water and rainfall came often enough. My best friend lived three doors down, and my only grandma lived in the back yard in her own home. The house was raised just high enough and I was small enough, to provide a hiding place. There was a certain spot where I could lay for hours and not be found. In the heat of 90 degree or hotter weather, the coolness of the shade and the soft dirt, which was delicious for a time, hid me well. In all the times I hid there I never encountered anything of danger, no spiders, no snakes, or bugs; nada. I suspect David could not hide under his tent, but he knew hiding places. It may have been in a small cave or opening in the side of a cliff where he knew he would be safe from whatever, or later, whomever might cause him harm. And because of his relationship with God, he knew God was his hiding place and served him better than any cave or physical hiding place. I don't fit under any house today, and my boyhood home has been gone for over fifty years. The creek was paved and thanks to the Texas drought, it has no water. I don't know where my boyhood friend moved, and my grandmother has been dead since 1986. Yet, even today, like David, I have a hiding place in God. Yesterday, Nellie awoke with the thought of John Wesley's prayer room and found online a photo of it. As she and I talked about prayer and the many hours that Wesley spent in prayer, she said, "Imagine what he shared in there; he must have cried in there and pleaded in there with God." John Wesley had a hiding place, and so do you.

No castle nor fortress can compare to the strength and power of God. There is no rock large enough to offer us the protection and safety of God. If we are pursued by wicked people or from unjust or cruel people, we have in God the hope and trust that has been ours for as long as we have known about or more importantly known and had a relationship with God. Even before our birth, as soon as God knew us, He has loved and cared for us. Thanks be to God, and let us sing those praises for our God.

PRAYER: Thank You, O Blessed Lord, for the hiding place your provide. Thank You for sharing with us that strength and protection that we often need. As David prayed, so do I, be to me that which protects and keeps me, for You are my hope and my trust. Amen.

Have a great and blessed day in the Lord!

Eradio Valverde

The Death of the Funeral Sermon

When did we become a community of faith that shares not hope, but a recap of the deceased's life? Jesus said, "Let not your heart be troubled; remember when Uncle Johnny used to control the tv all the time? Yeah, he was like that."

Losing a Dear Friend

One of the toughest things I ever faced early in my ministry were funerals. There is no "fun" in funerals. I "majored" in funerals while an intern at El Mesias UMC in Mission, Texas. I did nine funerals within a period of three or so months. I did some very sad funerals working with a dear man named Mr. Ford in that year, including one where no one showed up to the funeral home. The graveside was Mr. Ford's idea for this lady whose son did not even want a funeral for her. "Dig a hole and bury her" were his words as related to us by Mr. Ford, whose first name I sadly have forgotten, though I think it was Jim. The pastor and I helped Mr. Ford carry the coffin to the hearse, something I never wanted to do, and loaded it onto the hearse. For those who think the Valley does not get cold weather, please come during a winter, for that day was cold and rainy. We arrived at the cemetery to find a small crowd, but no son. Thankfully, Mr. Ford had some nice umbrellas and I had a nice overcoat. We waited an eternity for this jerk to drive up and loudly say, "Let's get this over with!" And we did.

Years later I was the pastor at El Mesias, and the funerals continued. Folks never seem to ask permission before they die, they just die. And it was during that time I met the man who replaced Mr. Ford, a young man named Ric Brown. Ric was different from what I had perceived to be the mold of funeral directors; serious, caring, but non-expressive. Ric was anything but, except for the caring part; Ric loved people and that showed. Ric also loved life and that showed. Ric loved Jesus Christ and that showed. Ric loved to laugh and that showed all too clearly. He took his job seriously, showing his care and concern for people and he had a policy of burying children I believe under the age of two, for free. His personal life had been traumatized by a loss of a child during his first marriage and he made it his policy to show love and care in providing the best he could for families who lost little ones. Ric helped me overcome my fear of death and the dead. While in high school I had made friends with the son of a prominent funeral director and he loved to share stories that fueled my fear. Thanks, bro! Ric took me behind the scenes and explained his calling and the laws of Texas when it came to the dead. He followed those faithfully.

We were blessed with a gift that helped our funeral ministry, a piano that used floopy disks to program music and so, if we knew we had a funeral coming, our pianist would record the hymns requested for the funeral and all I had to do was to find someone to insert the disk, press play at the appropriate time and we were in business! Ric loved to be that person. Our piano was on the choir loft behind the congregation so folks had to turn to see the choir or someone singing, and so Ric loved acting like he was the one playing this wonderful sacred music and he made the expressions and hand gestures as if he were a concert pianist. He was doing that just to make me laugh, which he knew I needed, but sometimes folks would turn around and were shocked to see the funeral director playing the piano for a funeral. And afterwards, he would still play along. "That was some great music, Ric!" And he would smile and thank them. I would laugh and shake my head.

In September of 1989, tragedy struck our small town. A school bus collided with a Coca-Cola truck and sent the bus into a water-filled caliche pit. I believe 21 children drowned as a result of that accident. I responded to the call because my secretary's husband was a fire fighter and she knew the location. I was known by several city leaders and so as I arrived I was asked to be on the shore where the parents of the children on the scene were awaiting news of their children's safety or death. I witnessed the pain and agony of parents grieving the loss of little ones. All I could do was hug and cry with many of the moms there at that pit. The sheriff then asked if I would help Ric set up a temporary morgue in the county pavilion near Mission. Ric came and drove us over there and he and I set up folding tables to be beds for the bodies as they arrived on stretchers. I had no time to be frightened I was just in shock, doing what was expected of me. The bodies would be placed on the floor and Ric and I would lift them onto the table. Ric asked that we clean the faces of dirt, sand, and other debris from the accident. One little girl still had her hairbrush in her hair. I had to straighten up the heads to align with the bodies and I had to remove that hairbrush. Then I had to await the arrival of parents to identify the bodies. Ric and I would never be the same when it came to our friendship; we were now more than friends, brothers and co-sufferers of life's worst experiences.

When I moved away from the Valley I missed Ric and his style of funerals. And somehow I kept in touch with him or news of Ric would reach me. When one of Nellie's first cousins died, I had a chance to work with Ric again. I heard of Ric's health not being what it could, and last night, as his wife posted in Facebook, his journey here on earth came to an end. I shared with her that just two days ago I was thinking of Ric and how I needed to stop by and see him the next time I was in Mission. I was sure Ric has some jokes to share with me as well as bring me up to date on all things funeral.

Ric was a giver and gave his all. Ric is among that number that has heard or will hear, "Well done, good and faithful servant."

Heaven's gain is our painful loss; but thank You, God, for Ric and men and women like Ric. Bless and comfort Kathy and their kids.

Take Good Notes!

Telling a story takes a story. Look at Jesus and His method of sharing and teaching. Jesus related to His audience, so must we. And taking notes helps us remember what we heard or experienced or lived; then we can share that with others. I write this because of all the world has been living the last couple of days, namely, the awaiting and arrival and first glimpse of this new prince. Take notes. And using that phrase I so disliked in high school, but I know it's applicable, Compare and Contrast that birth with the One that truly mattered some 2,000 years ago. It will make for a great Christmas Eve story to help in sharing the True Story. God bless you!

Internal Server Error

Woke up this morning and turned on my iPad to read The Upper Room. The page said, "Internal Server Error." I tried going to it another way, with a slightly different web address. Internal Server Error. I kept thinking, Okay, Lord, this is my devotional time for the day and the message is Internal Server Error? Hmm. I recently went out of town and shut down my shared e-devotional, ConCafe, for some days. I wanted time to write some other things and I've gotten a couple of Why did you stop? emails. Could it be an Internal Server Error, meaning I need to get my act together and share again?

I did read the Book of Nehemiah during my time away. And I was blessed by things that I had either overlooked or sensed for the very first time in this re-reading. I recommend you read a chapter a day of this great biblical book on re-building. It's the story after a loss, to reassess the state of things and to make corrections or recommendations about where one finds oneself or in this case where the nation found itself. It was broken down. In the first chapter when Nehi (my nickname for the writer; hey, it's easier than typing the whole name!) asks about how the Jewish remnant in Jerusalem was doing, this was the report, "They...are in great trouble and disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates have been burned with fire." This made Nehi weep and pray a prayer for God to help lead him to what needed to be done.

The result was not so much the structure as it was the spirit. The people found themselves alienated from God and the structure reflected that. Last night at an Intro meeting at one of my churches, I felt a wonderful spirit as I always do with these kind folk, and as they talked and shared about what they do as a church I discovered, their structure is blessed because their spirit is right with God. They do for others. They sponsor youth going into Teen Challenge to get their lives straightened out in a spiritual manner. They organized and help feed the people with a food pantry. They raise good money to share with our mission home in San Antonio. They know to give and God has given to them. The know how to love and they are loved. They said things I wish I heard more churches say. To the new pastor, "We are the church, you are our leader; if we need to change, we'll change!" (What??) I usually hear the opposite, usually not at first, but later when the church complains about the new direction the pastor is trying to share with them. And the usually hateful, "We were here before you got here, and we'll be here after you leave..." Structure vs. Spirit. Didn't someone say you reap what you sow? Nehi says when we seek God and know God, true rebuilding will begin in our spirit and then that will bless and transform our structure.

For Those Before Interviews...

Stillness of heart. Clarity of mind. Clearness of spirit. Calm and patience before responding.

Preaching

Never preach a poor sermon where you answer questions your people are not even asking.

6 Steps of Courageous Leadership

These are from Mr. G. J. Hart, CEO of CPK, okay, that was too easy, California Pizza Kitchen. He shared these yesterday in the Business Section of the NY Times. Overall, he says to have the courage to be different as a leader. These are the six things he has learned since being the manager of teenaged baseball umpires (he was a teen himself). 1. Be the very best you can be, because you can't lead anybody if you can't lead yourself. 2. Dream, and dream big. 3. Lead with your heart first. Let people see you're human and that there is a human side to you. 4. Trust the people you lead. 5. Do the right thing, always. 6. Serve the people you lead. Put the cause before yourself and a willingness to see it through. These work in the Kingdom Work we're about! Blessings, Eradio